Not a very nice guy: The Dark Half by Stephen King

From Goodreads: Thad Beaumont is a Pulitzer Prize-winning author who has developed a lucrative thriller-writing alter ego named George Stark. When he stops being fun Beaumont wants to kill him. But George Stark does not want to die.

Chances are, when talking to most Stephen King fans, The Dark Half doesn’t come up. It’s not considered one of his best (Pet Semetary, ‘Salem’s Lot, The Stand, IT) and it’s not considered one of his worst (Rose Madder, The Tommyknockers, Cell). If you were to ask me (and I’m sure you’ve been dying to), this is a situation that must be rectified.

The Dark Half, aside from the truly excellent Bag of Bones, is likely one of Mr. King’s most underrated novels. Given what had just happened with his own pseudonym, The Dark Half is likely inspired by the novelist’s own experience. (I’m too lazy to check, this statement (I imagine) truly compels you to keep reading my blog. Sorry.)

Thad Beaumont, literary writer, has found little commercial success and much difficulty. When he decides to write as George Stark, things change. However, due to the unhealthy nature of George Stark’s writing process (and a rather creepy fan threatening to “out” his true identity), Thad and his wife decide to end his career. Only George doesn’t like that idea. Not even a little. The dark half of Thad decides to take matters into his own hands with very bloody results.

This is not a “starter” Stephen King novel. If you have never read anything by him before, this is not the one to pick up. It is worth reading second (or third or fourth, etc.), after you’ve had a chance to absorb and appreciate an introduction to one of America’s great contemporary writers. The novel, while having elements of horror and the supernatural, is more of a psychological thriller. I don’t believe anyone is wholly good or wholly bad, we all have lightness and darkness within. Only for Thad Beaumont, the dark half doesn’t want to be overshadowed or forgotten. I don’t know that Thad ever wins the battle; although the ending is benign enough (Bag of Bones gives an update on Thad Beaumont’s current situation).

The Dark Half immediately starts strong and stays that way for about 90% of the novel. I feel this is typical of a Stephen King novel and I don’t actually fault him for his occasional less than stellar ending. Specifically, if you’re looking at a novel as epic in scope as IT or The Stand, how do you end something like that? The answer, generally, is you can’t. The buildup in IT is so strong, that no matter how the book ended, it couldn’t exceed the greatness of the first 90%. The Dark Half suffers from much of the same fate. It ends and the reader is left saying “um, okay…sparrows?”. Or at least I am. Regardless, I just added The Dark Half movie (circa 1993) to my Netflix queue. What was I doing in 1993 that caused me to miss this cinematic gem? Probably watching Thundercats or TMNT reruns…

What’s better than a semi-fictitious creature that starts out as an undeveloped embryo embedded in the brain, ends up a vicious killer, but only desires to be a pulp fiction writer? The answer: not much.